Spreading Holiday Beer

By
Fritz Hahn

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season has little to do with presents, decorating a tree or a turkey dinner with all the trimmings. I look forward to winter beers, made in small quantities, that only appear at this time of year. These are richer, heavier beers, often flavored with spices or malts, suited to cold weather and perfect for enjoying after a walk in the snow, in front of a roaring fire or, more likely, in a bar with visiting friends.

Boulevard Woodgrill makes it easy to try out these seasonal drinks with a promotion called "Twelve Beers of Christmas," which promises a dozen of these special beers on tap. (It's rare to find more than two or three on draft outside of R.F.D. or the Reef.)

When I visited the sleek little Clarendon bistro earlier this week, the draft lineup included standouts like Delirium Noel (a spicier, stronger sibling of the notorious Delirium Tremens); the soothing, traditional Winter Warmer from Lancaster Brewing Company of Lancaster, Pa., and Wild Goose's Snow Goose Winter Ale, which packs a surprising hop bite.

The only downside is that "Twelve Beers of Christmas" is something of a misnomer. Only seven seasonal beers are on the menu at the moment, and they're already out of Abita's Christmas Beer (not coincidentally, one of the beverages I was looking forward to sampling). But there are more on the way, to be added incrementally. When the bar's current keg of Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale is kicked, for example, Sierra's legendary Celebration Ale will take its tap handle. If all goes well, the seasonal beers will keep flowing into the new year.